If you are trying to launch a new band, then you are aware that many can be a problem. You need to take care of your equipment, you need to handle promotions, and you need to drive to gigs. There are plenty of things to worry about, but taking care of album art is one of the most important. There are several potential problems you will need to contend with, but if you take a look at the following, you should be able to avoid the most common pitfalls.
Late Orders-Make plans, lots of plans. From the time you order your CD it will take up to two weeks to arrive. Once that happens, you need to have your art printed, and approve the final result. If you allow time for adjustments and various changes, you should be fine.
Ordering Way too Much-One of the biggest mistakes that bands tend to make is ordering too much stock. Sure, it was once critical to order 1000 discs, but with CD-R and DVD-R drives, you can create copies whenever you want. Don't spend all of your money making discs. Spend the money on other, more important things.
Printing Your Own CD Labels-First, paper labels and ink-jet printing on blank CDR media just doesn't look as good as professionally printed CDs. There is a time and place for do-it-yourself, but album release is not one of those times. It is better to have a commercial printing company make custom printed discs for you, even when you have a small order. Ink is expensive and the ink-jet cartridge required for printing on discs run out fast. Add in your time and it's unlikely that printing your own labels will be profitable. You can now have CD-R media pre-printed and then you can record as needed.
Bad Album Art-Manufacturers set specifications for all albums, and a band will need to make sure these specifications are followed. If you deviated from the specs, you will likely find your album rejected. The images presented need to fit the artwork template, and they need to conform to a format. This is something that all bands need to follow, regardless of their popularity or position.
Digital Availability-As your album is released, make sure everyone has access to it. This will entail releasing it in several different formats -- digital formats included. One great distributor would be iTunes, and you need to ensure that you offer several ways for your fans to obtain the content.
Lack of Post-Release Strategy-Releasing an album is not the end of your strategy. As a matter of fact, it is only the beginning. You need to establish the number of discs you will need for promotion, and you will need to build a schedule for making videos. If you want to keep your band alive between album releases, try to become familiar with those who blog about music and maintain the buzz.
Many problems with an album release can be avoided with some planning. Many problems are related to creating CDs. Most of these problems are easily avoided by following the advice present in this paper and following the manufacturer's specific advice. If you are unclear about something, call up the manufacture, they will help. A few simple marketing techniques can help you make the most of your album release.
Late Orders-Make plans, lots of plans. From the time you order your CD it will take up to two weeks to arrive. Once that happens, you need to have your art printed, and approve the final result. If you allow time for adjustments and various changes, you should be fine.
Ordering Way too Much-One of the biggest mistakes that bands tend to make is ordering too much stock. Sure, it was once critical to order 1000 discs, but with CD-R and DVD-R drives, you can create copies whenever you want. Don't spend all of your money making discs. Spend the money on other, more important things.
Printing Your Own CD Labels-First, paper labels and ink-jet printing on blank CDR media just doesn't look as good as professionally printed CDs. There is a time and place for do-it-yourself, but album release is not one of those times. It is better to have a commercial printing company make custom printed discs for you, even when you have a small order. Ink is expensive and the ink-jet cartridge required for printing on discs run out fast. Add in your time and it's unlikely that printing your own labels will be profitable. You can now have CD-R media pre-printed and then you can record as needed.
Bad Album Art-Manufacturers set specifications for all albums, and a band will need to make sure these specifications are followed. If you deviated from the specs, you will likely find your album rejected. The images presented need to fit the artwork template, and they need to conform to a format. This is something that all bands need to follow, regardless of their popularity or position.
Digital Availability-As your album is released, make sure everyone has access to it. This will entail releasing it in several different formats -- digital formats included. One great distributor would be iTunes, and you need to ensure that you offer several ways for your fans to obtain the content.
Lack of Post-Release Strategy-Releasing an album is not the end of your strategy. As a matter of fact, it is only the beginning. You need to establish the number of discs you will need for promotion, and you will need to build a schedule for making videos. If you want to keep your band alive between album releases, try to become familiar with those who blog about music and maintain the buzz.
Many problems with an album release can be avoided with some planning. Many problems are related to creating CDs. Most of these problems are easily avoided by following the advice present in this paper and following the manufacturer's specific advice. If you are unclear about something, call up the manufacture, they will help. A few simple marketing techniques can help you make the most of your album release.